Martin Conboy Sr. (1833 – December 21, 1909) was an Irish-born soldier who fought in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

. Conboy received the United States' highest award for bravery during combat, the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...

, for his action during the

Battle of Williamsburg The Battle of Williamsburg, also known as the Battle of Fort Magruder, took place on May 5, 1862, in York County, James City County, and Williamsburg, Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the first pi ...

in Virginia on 5 May 1862. He was honored with the award on 11 October 1892.

Biography

Martin was born in 1833 to Roger Conboy and Sarah Murry in

Athleague Athleague () is a village and a parish in the Diocese of Elphin on the River Suck in the west of Ireland in County Roscommon, near the town of Roscommon. Its church was founded sometime around 500 by Maenucan Atha Liacc ('Maonagán of Athlea ...

, County Roscommon,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The oldest of 6 children, Martin immigrated to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in 1860, where he soon enlisted in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

in August 1861. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in December 1862 in 37th

37th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment The 37th New York Infantry Regiment or the Irish Rifles was formed accepted by the State on May 25, 1861, and organized in New York City. The regiment mustered in the service of the United States on June 6 and 7, 1861 for two years of service t ...

, nicknamed the “ Irish Rifles.” After settling down in

Washington DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

following the war, Martin and his wife Bridgett Harlow (also from Roscommon, Ireland) had a son Martin Jr., a devout

Irish Catholic Irish Catholics are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland whose members are both Catholic and Irish. They have a large diaspora, which includes over 36 million American citizens and over 14 million British citizens (a quarter of the Briti ...

who, through his legal acumen and personal relationships with both Franklin Delano Roosevelt and

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (, ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was a prominent Irish statesman and political leader. He served several terms as head of govern ...

(

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...

of the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...

), went on to become an important figure in the fight for Irish independence from Britain. Martin Conboy Sr died on 21 December 1909, and his remains were initially interred at the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in New Jersey. In 2001 he was reinterred at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

.Burial Detail: Conboy, Martin (Section 54, Grave 3841) Interment Date: 07/31/2001
– ANC Explorer

Medal of Honor citation

References

External links

Martin Conboy
at ArlingtonCemetery.net, an unofficial website {{DEFAULTSORT:Conboy, Martin 1833 births 1909 deaths Irish-born Medal of Honor recipients People of New York (state) in the American Civil War Union Army officers United States Army Medal of Honor recipients American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor People from Athleague Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Military personnel from County Roscommon

Biography

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References

External links